Social Nature of Humanity

Life Night Outline

Catechism

YouCat

Scripture

Key Concepts

We were created in the image and likeness of a God who is a Trinity of Persons. Because of this, we are created for community.

Our social nature is at the heart of all Catholic social teaching. We cannot simply live for ourselves and ignore others. We are called to “love our neighbors as ourselves.

If we become isolated from others, we cannot live the fullness of Christianity. We must be on guard against anything that separates us from community.

Goal of this Night

The goal of this night is to introduce the semester on social justice by focusing on the social nature of humanity and how our nature reflects the nature of God. This night will help the teens understand how our faith is connected to the greater community.

About this night

This is the first night of the semester on social justice. Throughout the semester, we will explore how we are called to live in true community with others – our neighbors. This Life Night will set the stage for the rest of the nights. The night begins with a forced isolation – no talking, no eye contact, nothing. The skit that follows is a humorous look at the isolation that can happen through so-called social media. The teaching will highlight the Trinitarian nature of God and how we are created in that nature, meaning we are made for community. The Break will give the teens a chance to build community and discuss Scripture in small groups. Finally, this night will close by giving each teen a prayer partner for the semester and interceding for others in prayer.

Parental Notice

This is the first Life Night of our semester on social justice. Throughout the semester, we will be looking at our call to see all people as “neighbor” and fulfill the Great Commandment by loving them as we love ourselves. This night looks at the social nature of humanity and how that reflects the nature of God as Trinity. Often, technology and social media can isolate us and keep us from really interacting with others. In this Life Night, your teen was given the opportunity to build community, study Scripture, and intercede for others in prayer. It is our hope that this semester will help your teens engage in true community and see all people as “neighbor.” Below are a few questions for discussion during the week:

What does it mean that we were created for community? Where do you feel that you are a part of a community?

How can we be more connected as a family? Does technology help or hurt us in this?

Who are our “neighbors”? How can we love them as Jesus calls us to?

Environment

The environment for this Life Night should make the meeting space feel very crowded. On the walls, hang life-size silhouettes of people. In between the silhouettes, have images of people from newspapers and magazines. If possible, have images of various faces scrolling on the screen. As the teens enter, have a sign explaining that no one is allowed to directly interact with anyone else (no talking, no eye contact, no body language, etc.). Have the Core Members stationed at the entrance to point to the sign and enforce the rules.

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